I don’t remember a time not feeling incredibly loved while I was growing up. My mom made it clear we were her greatest joy in life.

Birthday’s were just another reminder of that love. They were just another reason to show us that she believed we hung the moon. They were filled with family dinners and silly moments like making us leave the room until the lights were turned off and the candles were lit. She would then jokingly call for us and we would have to pretend we were surprised.

One thing that really bothered me during my marriage is that Birthday’s were no longer a day I felt loved. My husband disagreed with the silly hoopla that I grew up with. He said that his family didn’t make a fuss over birthdays so neither should we. I would try and compromise with him. I would say that’s great and I respect that. We will do that on your birthday, but on my birthday I want to feel the magic of that love. The kinda love that sustains you, breeds more confidence and makes you believe you are all that you are.

The amped up, ‘We love you more than anything kinda day.’

I think I had been married about ten years when my sister showed up on my doorstep with a birthday cake. She forced her way past me with a big smile and said, “This is ridiculous! You should at least get a cake on your birthday!”

I now have the freedom to have any kinda birthday that I want. I get to celebrate me. I get to do the silly things that I find decadent. The things that I believe turn an ordinary day into an extraordinary day.

Like sipping champagne on the top level of the Ritz.
or
Sitting outside at Kramer’s Books on Dupont Circle, noshing on a crab omelette and mimosa watching D.C. come alive.
or
Going to the theater and watching two movies back to back.

I know it may sound silly to some, only to me Birthday’s are still meant to be filled with childlike wonder. It does not matter the age. It is a day meant just for you. A day where wishes come true and love is so grand that you feel invincible.

A day where you are reminded that there is something special about you. There is something extraordinary. There is something remarkable. There is something uncommon. There is something exceptional.

On this particular Birthday I feel a freedom that I haven’t felt in a long while. A freedom to feel loved again.
I should never have waited for someone to celebrate me. I should have gotten a table for one at Kramer’s, sipped my mimosa and watched the wonder of the world.

So that’s my Birthday wish today for all of my friends.

I want each of them to celebrate themselves rather than celebrate with me this year. I want one big “Progressive Birthday Party.” All of my friends going out and choosing to spend their time in that one decadent way that makes them feel like an ordinary day has turned extraordinary.

The real gift coming back to me by way of e-mail, texts, phone calls as to what they chose to do.

I want them reminded of the magic of love.

I want them reminded that they are something extraordinary. There are something remarkable. There are something uncommon. There are something exceptional.